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Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
A tribute to Ronnie James Dio: July 10, 1942 – May 16, 2010
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Ronnie James Dio died 15 years ago, on May 16, 2010, less than six months after announcing he was battling stomach cancer. Classic Rock's Paul Elliott, who first saw Dio onstage at the Hammersmith Odeon in 1984 and interviewed him many times, paid tribute. The man whose mighty voice lit up the music of Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and Heaven And Hell was truly a unique talent: a vocalist of immense power, expression and innate melodic flair, an elegant lyricist, and a storyteller of rich imagination. There is magic in the words and voice of Ronnie James Dio. Music was central to his life from an early age. Although he never received any formal vocal training, as a child he mastered French horn and trumpet, to which he later attributed the breathing control pivotal to his singing power. He played bass guitar in his first professional group, the Vegas Kings, a rockabilly outfit formed in 1957 and based in New York State. But it didn't take him long to answer his true calling. By the end of 1958, he was lead singer of a new-look band, Ronnie & The Red Caps, later renamed Ronnie Dio & The Prophets after Ronnie had adopted a stage name appropriated from mobster Johnny Dio. Success did not come quickly. As the rock era dawned in the 60s, Dio toiled in obscurity as leader of the Electric Elves, subsequently shortened to Elf. But in the early 70s came the break that he had longed for, when Deep Purple's Roger Glover and Ian Paice saw potential in Elf and elected to produce the band's self-titled debut album. And from there, a strong connection was formed between the two bands – a connection that led Dio to the man who would transform his career and change his life. Ritchie Blackmore, Deep Purple's moody guitar hero, took a shine to Elf – and especially their singer – when the two bands toured together between 1972 and 1974. And when Blackmore chose to make a solo record, having openly voiced his displeasure over Purple's funk-influenced albums Burn and Stormbringer, he enlisted Dio and the other members of Elf, minus guitarist Steve Edwards. That album, titled Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, was released in 1975 shortly after the guitarist quit Deep Purple. And it was immediately apparent that Blackmore had found the perfect foil in Dio, a singer whose voice and imagery were ideally suited to Blackmore's baroque taste. Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow was the album on which Ronnie James Dio came of age. After all the lean years before and with Elf, this was Ronnie's golden opportunity, and he responded with a performance of complete authority. The album's opening track, Man On The Silver Mountain, set the template for so much to come: an epic, mystical tale rendered in a voice that soared and thundered. And Dio proved equally adept on the album's gentler songs, the poetic Catch The Rainbow, and The Temple Of The King, perhaps the most beautiful and elegiac song he ever recorded. What followed was one of rock's all-time classic albums, establishing this new band – now simply named Rainbow – as a major force, and confirming Dio as a singer of unrivalled power. Released in June 1976, Rainbow Rising is the model of what aficionados like to call 'castle rock': heroic, fantasy-themed, progressive heavy metal built to a monolithic scale, and most potently illustrated by Stargazer, the album's vast quasi-symphonic centrepiece. Classic Rock's Geoff Barton, then writing for Sounds, summed up Rising perfectly, describing it as 'thermonuclear rock'n'roll'. How to top that? Ronnie almost did on Rainbow's third studio album Long Live Rock'N'Roll with the track Gates Of Babylon, another Stargazer-sized set-piece. But that record, best known for its anthemic title track, was to be Dio's swansong for Rainbow, Blackmore replacing him with dapper Englishman Graham Bonnet as he pursued a more radio-friendly direction. It was hard on Ronnie, being out of a job after just four years with Rainbow. But within a year he would be courted by another world-famous rock band – and this would present him with the greatest challenge of his career. When announced as the new singer in Black Sabbath – succeeding the much-loved Ozzy Osbourne – Dio faced hostility from the media and from hardcore Sabbath fans. To further complicate the issue, Dio was an American joining a quintessentially British band. But Dio's debut with Sabbath, 1980's Heaven And Hell, silenced his critics. In Sounds, Peter Makowski stated: 'Ronnie James Dio has injected a whole new energy into the group… Just sit back, turn it up and feel your brain implode. Simply put, Dio made Black Sabbath great again. His gift for melody, and his poetic sensibility, brought a lyrical quality to Sabbath's music and inspired Tony Iommi in particular, whose lead guitar work on the album's phenomenal title track is the best he has ever played. And crucially, Dio could also handle the really heavy stuff, as he proved emphatically on Neon Knights, arguably the heaviest of all Sabs songs. Nobody has ever sung a heavy metal song better than Ronnie did with Neon Knights. He would make another great album with Sabbath, Mob Rules, released in 1981. But as so often happens, a combination of heavy touring and personality clashes led to a split in 1982 amid rumours that the rival parties had been tampering with the mix of the live-in-concert album Live Evil. Many years later, Ronnie would dismiss these stories as 'bullshit', but on the cover of Live Evil there was a small detail that spoke volumes of the animosity between Sabbath and Dio: the singer was billed not as Ronnie James Dio but as plain Ronnie Dio. It was a cheap shot to which Ronnie reacted by forming a new band under his own name, a band whose first album would blow Sabbath out of the water. Holy Diver, released in June 1983, is one of the great heavy metal debuts. The band Ronnie put together featured two familiar faces – former Rainbow colleague Jimmy Bain on bass, and fellow Sabbath fugitive Vinny Appice on drums – plus a relatively unknown and inexperienced guitarist in 19-year-old Vivian Campbell, previously of Irish band Sweet Savage. But they made a tight unit: Bain and Appice rock solid, Campbell flashy and fiery. With Ronnie now undisputed group leader for the first time since Elf, Holy Diver was the album on which his singular artistic vision was finally realised. It's a record packed with classic songs, not just Dio classics but genre-defining heavy metal classics: Stand Up And Shout, Holy Diver, Rainbow In The Dark, Don't Talk To Strangers. By comparison, Sabbath's Born Again, featuring Dio's surprise replacement Ian Gillan, was widely regarded as a joke, even before Spinal Tap lampooned the Sabs' Stonehenge stage set. Throughout the 80s, Dio - the man and the band - maintained a large and loyal following. Band members came and went, beginning with Vivian Campbell, who went on to Whitesnake and then Def Leppard. In '86 Ronnie organised Hear 'N Aid, heavy metal's answer to Band Aid, a charity project for African famine relief that produced a hit single, Stars, written by Ronnie and sung by a hairy ensemble cast featuring members of Motley Crue, Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. And if no subsequent Dio album ever matched Holy Diver, Ronnie continued to deliver great songs (We Rock, The Last In Line, Sacred Heart, Rock'N'Roll Children) and spectacular live shows. (Nobody who saw Ronnie battling Dean The Dragon on stage could ever forget the experience!) Then, in the early 90s, came an astonishing volte-face. Ronnie rejoined Black Sabbath. It didn't last. They made a half-decent album, Dehumanizer, but when Sabbath were invited to support Ozzy on what was billed as the Double-O's farewell tour, Ronnie pulled out and Rob Halford of Judas Priest acted as stand-in. Ronnie re-launched Dio in 1994, and in the next 10 years the band recorded five albums with varying line-ups. But for Ronnie, Black Sabbath was unfinished business, and in 2007 he reunited with Iommi, Appice and bassist Geezer Butler as Heaven And Hell. This would prove to be Ronnie James Dio's last hurrah. Initially, Ronnie had intended to reform Dio after Heaven And Hell's world tour, but such was the success of that tour, and so strong was the vibe in the band after recording three new tracks for the Black Sabbath compilation The Dio Years, it was decided that Heaven And Hell would record a brand new album. That album, The Devil You Know, was released to widespread acclaim in 2009. It would be the last of Ronnie's recordings released in his lifetime. The death of Ronnie James Dio has had a profound effect both on those who knew him and those who simply loved his music. For this writer, there are many memories to cherish. Ronnie was the first rock star I interviewed as a professional journalist, back in 1985, when he was promoting Dio's Sacred Heart album. It was a huge thrill for me to meet him. Since 1980 – when I unwrapped a Christmas present from my brother, a cassette of Heaven And Hell – I have been a Ronnie James Dio fan. I first saw Ronnie on stage with Dio at the Hammersmith Odeon in 1984, on The Last In Line tour. And across the years I've seen Ronnie play so many great shows: at Birmingham NEC with that bloody dragon, at London's Astoria performing the whole of Holy Diver, and the last time, at Brighton Centre with Heaven And Hell. My last interview with Ronnie was just a couple of years ago, when he was in London with Heaven And Hell. What I remember most of all was the warmth of the rapport between him and Tony, Geezer and Vinny. I asked Ronnie about a phrase he used many times in his lyrics, a phrase that had become akin to a trademark: 'Look out!' He'd used it in Holy Diver, in Rainbow In The Dark, and a record-breaking five times in Sabbath's Children Of The Sea. He smiled. 'It's funny. Whenever I play in Phoenix, this one guy is always there, and every time I'm going to sing it he holds up sign that says 'Look Out!' I take it as a compliment!' He was right: it is a compliment. When I had a leaving party after 10 years working for Kerrang!, the invitations featured a photo of Ronnie with a stuffed eagle and the headline: Look Out! It was a tribute to the man who, for me, best epitomises the spirit of heavy metal. In a 2009 issue of Classic Rock, I stated: 'Of all the legendary heavy metal singers, Ronnie James Dio is the greatest.' And there are many, all over the world, who share that opinion. I recall a drunken night with friends in Brighton when the conversation inevitably turned to heavy metal, and, specifically, singers – at which point one friend, Andy Hunns, threatened to walk out of the pub unless we all agreed that Ronnie James Dio is the No.1 metal singer of all time. We agreed, Andy stayed. Rob Halford was voted No.2. Ronnie James Dio sang so many great songs: Man On The Silver Mountain, Sixteenth Century Greensleeves, The Temple Of The King, Stargazer, Tarot Woman, Starstruck, Kill The King, Long Live Rock'N'Roll, Neon Knights, Children Of The Sea, Heaven And Hell, Die Young, Stand Up And Shout, Holy Diver, Rainbow In The Dark, The Last In Line, We Rock. But if there is one song, above all others, with a lyric that best captures the essence of Ronnie James Dio, it is Sacred Heart: 'Whenever we dream, that's when we fly.' He dared to dream, and he flew high. Rest in peace, Ronnie.
Perth Now
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Halestorm's Lzzy Hale feared Back to Beginning performance invite was fake and didn't reply at first
Halestorm's Lzzy Hale didn't respond to Sharon Osbourne's email inviting the band to perform at Black Sabbath's last-ever concert for two days - because she didn't know if it was "real". The 41-year-old singer is the only woman who has been invited to perform at the star-studded 'Back to the Beginning' event, which will feature Black Sabbath's original line-up, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward, as well as performances from Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Gojira, Alice In Chains, and Lamb Of God among others. Speaking to Audacy Music, Lzzy said: "Dude, so we got this e-mail from [Ozzy's wife and manager] Sharon Osbourne. And I didn't answer it for two days. 'cause I'm, like, 'Is this real?' It's wild. "I've been a Black Sabbath fan since I was 11. The first riff I ever learned a guitar was 'Heaven And Hell' by Black Sabbath. "To be the only woman asked to be there is an honour as well." Several of Lzzy's fellow female singers, including The Pretty Reckless' Taylor Momsen and Evanescence frontwoman Amy Lee, have told her how "proud" they are ahead of her performance at 'Back to the Beginning', which will take place at Villa Park in Birmingham on July 5th. She added: "I was talking to my friends, Taylor Momsen and Amy Lee and [In This Moment's] Maria Brink and all of my sisters in this genre, and they're all so proud of me. "And I said, 'Hey, girls, I'm carrying you with me. You're gonna be there in spirit. I'm gonna make you girls so proud.' "And so it's this beautiful event that everyone gets to look forward to. I'm so glad they're doing it." Rage Against The Machine rocker Tom Morello is the musical director of the spectacle, and he has told Lzzy it is "in the works" for her and Disturbed's David Draiman to perform Ozzy and Lita Ford song 'Close My Eyes Forever' at the event. Lzzy and David previously recorded the cover together as a duet. She said: "So, according to Tom Morello, that is in the works, but he said, 'You're gonna have to be patient with the confirmation for that.' "Because of Ozzy's health and everything, we're gonna have to see pretty much on the day how much Ozzy's going to be singing and willing to do. But Halestorm is doing a set. We're also doing a Black Sabbath cover. "And I've been asked to sing in the supergroup with Tom Morello and everybody there."
